Ghro Gazah
Age I Ghro Gazah believed only in power. For a long time, the fire mage bent his power to the will of strong chieftains of the Orc tribes. Using his magic, he helped warlords defeat armies and carve out areas of power. Ghro's only goal in life, however, was attaining power for himself. This led Ghro Gazah to study of the black arts, including the study of the undead and their ilk. Through a series of events, Ghro developed a phylactery and shattered his mortal form in a ritual to become a lich. Though Ghro had attained much power as a mage, the undead form he had taken ostracized him from the Orcish community, making him an exile from his people. Having been exiled, Ghro left the Orc lands in search of artifacts and spells to further enhance his power. Along his travels, he met the adventurers Kairo, Jiang, and Thrall. As adventurers, they became powerful, fighting against petty magicians and demonic forces. Their conquests brought them into conflict with a powerful enemy, Diablo himself. Ghro and his allies were enlisted to help the angel Tyrael and heaven to fight against the forces of Diablo. This led to the first raid on Hell, in a desperate attempt to defeat Diablo and stop the steady advance of Hell upon the Middle Realm. Through a combination of luck and good timing, Diablo was defeated, though it cost the heroes their lives. Thus peace reigned in the Middle Realm for quite some time. Age 2 Though Diablo had been defeated, he wasn't permanently put down. Instead, he was stricken into three separate parts that each held a different portion of Diablo's original power, these became Diablo, Mephisto, and Baal. The new age brought new challenges for a new generation of heroes. These heroes held back the demonic tide, but they knew they needed assistance. Through a series of soul binding rituals and black magic, Ghro Gazah was called back from the ether of death to once again walk the Middle Realm. Ghro was reborn with all the power he once held, and the same desire to obtain even more power. After meeting the champions that had brought him to life, again, Ghro made his way through the libraries of their most powerful mage, absorbing all the knowledge he had missed while his body lay dead. Having gained this knowledge, the lich wandered the realm, observing a growing threat among the many that had cropped up over the age. An old force known as Eve desired nothing more than the recapture of all that she believed was hers. In this case, it meant all life in the Middle Realm. Realizing he would only lose in a fight against this force, Ghro Gazah offered his services to Eve, meanwhile using the time he gained to study her and how he might defeat her. Much time passed, Ghro gained power and learned many new, powerful, abilities, and Eve was ready to move upon the worldstone itself. The worldstone held the names of every soul ever created in the middle realm. However, the worldstone was guarded by the 4 avatars of existence: Death, Time, Fate, and Life. These forces stopped Eve, while the three attempted to gain access to the worldstone themselves. Ghro Gazah battled against Diablo while the other champions raced to provide assistance. The three were beaten back and Eve was paralyzed by Death, eliminating her as a threat. The champions slipped into the worldstone chamber and absorbed the souls of many, granting them ultimate power. Though they had become strong, the major forces of the world would not stand idly by. Diablo and his brothers discovered a method to recombine, recreating the original Diablo at full power. The champions met Diablo, in a final confrontation to determine the fate of the entirety of existence. The battle raged with no clear victor, until the new Death appeared, striking Diablo and slaying him. Upon the death of Diablo, Norton was triggered, wiping the world clean. Some say that Ghro Gazah remains upon the world, though none have seen him as of yet.